Literacy involves reading, writing, and thinking. Learning new words (vocabulary) plays a significant role in each of those areas.

Part of writing well involves using vocabulary correctly.

What are some ways you develop vocabulary skills for yourself?

What are some ways you develop vocabulary skills in students?

What are some ways you demonstrate vocabulary skills?

What are some ways you assess vocabulary skills?

What can you do today to learn and use a new word?

Here are some LiveBinders full of resources and activities for word work and vocabulary:

• Word Party Word Games
• Vocabulary Teaching Tools
• Tools for Learning Vocabulary
• Vocabulary Activities

I also did an advanced search on Big Universe Learning for the term vocabulary, and found lots of books that deal with word families and  letter sounds, which are the building blocks of vocabulary words. Teacher Created Material Publishing is the publisher of many books of this type on Learning Village.

You can also search the Big Universe Learning Blog for several other posts dealing with vocabulary and working with words.

image from http://www.flickr.com/photos/91485322@N00/1800380489/

Do you think the title is a bit of an exaggeration? Can you think of some books or stories that include lots of exaggeration? That is one of the features of  Tall Tales!

Wonderopolis shares a Wonder of the Day each day about a topic to promote thinking and conversations. One day this week the Wonder of the Day was “Why do they call it a Tall Tale?” To go along with this question, you can find basic information, vocabulary words, questions to promote thinking, and even other resources for finding out more about tall tales. There is even a lesson promoting the reading of tall tales as well as an activity to encourage writing a tall tale.

Focusing on reading types of stories, like tall tales, was something I really enjoyed when I was in the classroom. We would do studies where we would explore many examples of a certain type and then talk about the similarities and characteristics we found. I also liked to introduce a variety of vocabulary words that could be associated with that story type.

Here is some of the information Wonderopolis shares about tall tales:

Tall tales” are stories that are told as if they were true but contain exaggerated or unbelievable parts. Some tall tales are exaggerations of real events, while others are completely make-believe. Tall tales are usually very funny because the exaggerations in the story tend to be the main focus of the whole story.

A key part of American folk literature, tall tales are believed to have started from the bragging contests that tough American frontiersmen would start when they gathered around a fire. Most tall tales come from the 1800s, when courageous explorers had exciting adventures on their way to the Wild West.

If you were looking for interesting ways for students to write and “publish” their own tall tales, the Writing section in BigUniverse could be an option to use!

Even though it is not a traditional tall tale, you might also want to check out this tall tale: Sitka Rose by Shelly Gill. This story could be used as an example of the type of tall tale stories students could write. Students could work in groups to identify the characteristics of tall tales which are evident in this story.

Here are some ways you can use technology to support the study of, as well as the creation of tall tales in the classroom: http://www.vickiblackwell.com/talltales.html

Are there some tall tales that you enjoy reading? What are some ways you teach about tall tales?

I think it is important for children to use a wide variety of words in both speaking and writing. My students and I would label words as either a 2cent word or a 5dollar word. I wanted them to use more 5dollar words. What could I do to encourage them to learn those types of words and begin to use them more?

Traditional vocabulary instruction consists mainly of providing students with a list of words and then asking them to use the dictionary to find definitions and possibly write some sentences with those words.  I don’t know about you, but I don’t remember many of the words that I “learned” that way even if I made a 100 on the test at the end of the week.

In my classroom I tried to expose children to new words in reading. I tried to pick books to read aloud that would have some of those 5dollar words. My classroom often had large lists around the room for students to add words they encountered that they considered 5dollar words.  There were days when students were challenged to try to use at least one 5dollar word. At the end of the day or the next day, we would talk about the words they chose and how they used them.

As I was searching for some vocabulary information the other day, I came across a site called VocabSushi, and  one paragraph really stood out to me:

“The VocabSushi philosophy believes you can learn the meanings of words faster, more accurately and more efficiently by reading through sentences rather than just trying to memorize definitions. Many words, for example, commonly appear with other words – such as “an egregious error” or “an intrepid reporter” – which can clue the reader in on the word’s appropriate usage as well as its general meaning.”

Think of all the books you have access to (especially the ones at BigUniverse) that could be used to increase the vocabulary knowledge of children. I know that when I read with my 4 year old, we talk about the words that are interesting to her (and the ones that are fun for her to say).  I don’t why it surprises me when I hear her using those words the next day …

image from http://www.flickr.com/photos/94168846@N00/5413729128/

Increasing a child’s vocabulary has a direct impact on reading and comprehension. But how does one go about teaching and reinforcing vocabulary?

Teaching isolated words and definitions don’t make an impact on students if the words are not used and forgotten quickly. We learn to read better by reading. We learn to talk better by talking. We can build our vocabulary by learning and using new words both in reading and talking.

Vocabulary is crucial for success in both reading and writing. I want to assist students in gaining new words, but I am not really sure how to accomplish this goal. My school experiences with vocabulary consisted mainly of the teacher handing students lists of words, then the students were instructed to use dictionaries to find definitions. Definitions were memorized only to pass the vocabulary test at the end of the week. After the weekly test, those vocabulary words were rarely referred to again. The lack of usage of vocabulary words did not encourage the memory of the words, so they were quickly forgotten. That is not how I want vocabulary instruction to be in my class. I want students to have repeated exposure to and experience with the words.

Knowing and understanding vocabulary is critical to reading comprehension. Books (like ones you can find on Big Universe) that are read aloud to students can be excellent sources of sophisticated vocabulary words. That makes the Reading Aloud component of a Balanced Literacy Program one of the most highly recommended ways for encouraging language and literacy. The teacher read-aloud is a major opportunity for children to learn the meanings of new words. As children listen to the teacher read, and as they read, they have many opportunities to add words to their vocabulary. Those words that are added can later be used in talking and writing opportunities.

Here are some other resources on the Read Aloud Component:

• Guidelines for Implementing Read-Aloud Strategies in the Classroom

• Benefits of Read Alouds in Science

• Reading Aloud to Build Comprehension

• Reading Aloud — Is it worth it?

• Catching the Bug for Reading Through Interactive Read-Alouds

One of the skills you can focus on in a Balanced Literacy Program involves what to do when you are reading and you encounter a word that you don’t know. I have had lots of students tell me that they just skip the word and keep reading (which can present problems when trying to determine the meaning of the story or passage). I have also had several students tell me that they stop and focus on that figuring out that word so much that they forget what they were reading. To help students fall in the middle of those two extreme, I have used the Guess the Covered Word activity. I have used this activity as a whole group activity during a Teacher Directed reading time, but it has worked better when working with small groups during Guided Reading time. During the Guided Reading time, I could moves students between groups so I was able to work with the ones who specifically needed this skill. This could also be a great activity to use during Working With Words time in the Balanced Literacy Program.

Here is a detailed PowerPoint (good for younger students) about Guess the Covered Word from Cheryl Dick. This presentation goes over each step in the process. (I tried to embed it here but it wouldn’t work)

Here are some resources you might find helpful for Guess the Covered Word:

• Templates and PowerPoint Examples
• Cloze activity from LEARN NC
• Creating Guess the Covered Work PowerPoints
• Our Guess the Covered Word

Title: Paws, Claws, Hands, and Feet

Author: Kimberly Hutmacher
Illustrator: Sherry Rogers
Published: 2009 Sylvan Dell Publishing
ISBN: 9778-1-934359-88-4

Paws, Claws, Hands, and Feet by Kimberly Hutmacher is a rhythmic rhyming book about animals and how they use their appendages. A book like this is especially helpful for exposing children to a variety of verbs that they may not ordinarily use. When asked to describe what feet can do, many of my lower elementary students would say: walk, run, stand, hop, or jump. After reading this book, they discover that feet can also: cling, leap, dash, roam, etc.

Our 2nd and 3rd graders are beginning an animal inquiry. After choosing an animal and researching basic facts about the animal, they will organize their findings and present information to the class. Big Universe’s Book Creator is a great way to showcase their findings. As a bonus, students can create their own rhyming couplets similar to the style seen in Paws, Claws, Hands, and Feet.

Resources

• Paws, Claws, Hands and Feet Resources on the Sylvan Dell Publishing website.
• Read.Write. Think. Animal Inquiry Resources
• Read.Write.Think. Animal Inquiry Words Interactive
• ESpecies Animal Fact Sheets Electronic Fact Sheets on over 50 Species
• All About Animals Database

Where do you get inspiration for writing?  How do you think of the words you want to use?Imagine a room with word lists hanging all around – not just one “word wall” but words everywhere all over the room.

When I teach writing, I encourage students to not use the same words over and over again (I call these “worn out” or “boring” words). I have very large lists of interesting synonyms for some “boring” words. Students enjoy finding new words to use. Sometimes a student will find one of the words in a book. They get to share that “treasure find” with the class by reading the sentence that contains the word along with a few of the sentences around it. If students use any of the “list words” when they write, they get to use a marker or colored pencil to draw a circle around the word. There are times when students find other words that can be added to the list of synonyms, so we add those words. I guess I try to create “word detectives” in my classroom.

When students find interesting words while reading, they can present those to the class by writing that word on a sentence strip or index card and decorating it. If that new interesting word belongs with a synonym list on the wall, we add it. If the new word doesn’t fit in any of the lists, then we add it to the “look what I found” category.

We also do various activities with these word lists. They are a great “time filler” to use when lining up or transitioning from one activity to another.We can do word sorts based on syllables, vowels, number of letters, plural, prefix/suffix, antonyms. We can also create word webs by brainstorming words that sound the same, have similar parts, start with the same prefix, end with the same suffix, have the same base or root.

At times I hang up all the lists all around the room (the fire marshal does not like that too much). Other times I post lists that are related to what we are reading or studying in other subjects. When words all around the room gets to be too much, we have folders full of synonym lists for students to use. We could also use table tents, pocket charts, or containers to post words, but the huge word lists hanging around the room really capture student attention.

We’ve all heard that when children are young, their minds are like sponges.  We want to fill their brain with background knowledge and vocabulary so that they may easily use this knowledge when necessary.  Reading aloud is an excellent way to help build your child’s vocabulary.  Your child will certainly learn new words just by listening and through every day conversation, but here are a few tips to help build your child’s vocabulary explicitly through read alouds:

• Begin with high-frequency sight words when reading with preschoolers.  These are the words that appear frequently in writing, but are less common in every day conversation.  Children should be able to say the word on sight.  These words are essential to vocabulary development.
• Use the pictures to help your child make connections to word meanings.  Point to the picture in the text when reading an unknown word.
• If you come across a word when reading, and you aren’t sure if your child knows what it means, ask him.  This is a perfect opportunity to provide quick vocabulary instruction.  A one to two sentence explanation may be sufficient enough.
• If your child still has difficulty with vocabulary words, consider creating pictures (either drawing them or printing them online) to help make connections between words and their meanings.  Also consider labeling items in your house (banister, stairs, fireplace, chair, etc.)
• Word learning is enhanced through repeated readings of text, which provides opportunities to revise and refine word meanings (Kindle, 2009; Carey, 1978).  So, even though you may get tired of reading the same story over and over again, your child is actually morphing through several stages of word knowledge as you do: from never heard it, to sounds familiar, to it has something to do with, to well known (Kindle, 2009; Dale, 1965).

Most important of all: don’t be afraid to read books that have large words in them.  Fancy Nancy is a great series of books for girls that provide explicit vocabulary instruction through the story.  I know a few preschool girls who use words like “exquisite” and “furious” – and they use them correctly!

This post was inspired by: Vocabulary Development During Read Alouds: Primary Practices by Karen J. Kindle (The Reading Teacher, 2009).

Dawn Little (aka Links to Literacy) also blogs at www.teachingwithpicturebooks.wordpress.com where she provides educators with picture book lessons based on comprehension strategies and the Six Traits of Writing.  In addition, she blogs at www.literacytoolbox.wordpress.com where she provides educators and parents with tips and tools to enhance the literacy lives of children.  She is the founder and owner of Links to Literacy, a company dedicated to providing interactive literacy experiences for children and families.  Find out more at www.linkstoliteracy.com

Current events provide a rich resource for building language skills and promote active learning. Vocabulary enrichment, reading comprehension, writing opportunities and improved critical thinking are just a few of the benefits of using a newspaper, magazine or other news source in the classroom. Social awareness and improved listening aptitude and verbal skills are added bonuses.

Here is a list of ideas to get you started.

10 Ways to Use Current Events in the Classroom

1. Take advantage of “Today in History” columns in newspapers and on news websites. Let children take turns reading the history snippets. They’ll love being “news anchor of the day.” Try the Associated Press history page or the BBC’s “On This Day” link.

2. Use news stories to develop reader comprehension. Remember the 5 W’s and the “H” question. Who? What? Where? When? Why? How? These six questions give children a simple way to start processing what they have read, heard or seen. Read an article together and have students answer the questions orally. Then give them article handouts and let them circle this core information with colored pencils.

3. Have students watch a TV weather story. They can draw a sun or clouds or a snowman and list the day’s highs and lows or write a paragraph about a weather event such as the recent tornadoes that hit the South.

 Pair this exercise with engaging children’s picture books about weather such as “Tornadoes,” “Sunny or Cloudy,” “Droughts,” “Weather,” “Hurricanes,” “Blizzards,” “Countdown to Fall,” “Ice Storms,” “Christmas Eve Blizzard,” “Snow” and “Ocean Seasons” – all available online at Big Universe and perfect for Smart Board application.

4. Ask students to clip a magazine or newspaper article or print a current event from a kid-friendly online news feed like DOGO News. Have them read their articles’ headlines to the class. Then let the class play 20 Questions about a particularly intriguing headline to encourage interaction and investigation into the news story.

5. Talk about big news events and discuss how they affect people locally and around the world. For example, Iceland’s volcanic eruption had widespread impact. Planes couldn’t fly because of the ash cloud over Europe. Tourists couldn’t get home. Delivery of supplies for manufacturing was delayed, so many companies had to shut down production temporarily.

6. Display a “Where in the World?” map on a bulletin board. Discuss a current event and then tack a miniature flag (office supply aisle), identifying the location of the story. Soon you will have a visual reminder of all the places your class “visited,” expanding your students’ global awareness.

7. Find colorful adjectives in news stories. Distribute news clippings and have students highlight the descriptive words. Then have them rewrite a few sentences, substituting their own adjectives and adverbs for each highlighted word.

8. Write a “BigWigs” book. Watch, listen to or read a news story. Identify the names of local or national leaders. Who is your mayor? Who is your governor? Who is the president? Who are the leaders of other countries? Use this to lead into lessons about elections, voting and government. Have your students write a “BigWigs” book using Big Universe’s kid-friendly Author Tool. Don’t forget to explain the term “bigwigs” (aka “the big enchilada” or “the big cheese.”)

9. Let kids create their class spelling list for the week. Split students into groups of five and have them read a news article. They should select five new or interesting words from the story. Have them rewrite their five words and then alphabetize them or use them in a new sentence. Finally, compile a master list. Being involved in the list construction will spark interest and help students take ownership of the learning process.

10. Teach children how to have civil debate. Read an age appropriate news story or editorial. Divide kids into separate groups and let them role play different sides of an issue. Supply hats or other fun physical props to help them identify with people in the news. Act out what happened. The teacher or an outgoing child can portray a news reporter to stimulate conversation and deeper thinking. Switch roles and do it again.

Remember socially aware children armed with a well-rounded education are the peacemakers of tomorrow!

Valentine’s Day is Feb. 14, but did you know it’s the first day of the Chinese New Year, too?  Yup – the  Year of the Tiger is upon us! Maybe your child or class would have fun with some global fusion  –  half hearts, half dragons.

 Kids like quirky, well, most of them anyway. Hang Chinese lanterns from the ceiling and cut and paste valentines. Mix in talk of tigers, dragons and firecrackers and you are sure to engage the boys, as well.

I figure most of you have the Valentine’s Day theme down pat, so I’ll give you a few hints on how to use the Chinese New Year celebration as a spring board for learning.

Get to Know and Appreciate China

• Make Chinese paper lanterns to string in a doorway or from the ceiling. Very festive.
• Read “China” by Gisela Lee, who writes about this influential country’s rich history and vibrant modern-day culture. The book posted online by Big Universe has a map, colorful pictures and a good vocabulary list aimed at sixth-graders. (Teacher Created Materials Publishing)
• Fly a kite, bring collapsible umbrellas to school or play dominoes. They were all invented by the Chinese.
• Use “Kingka,” an award-winning board game, as a class supplement. Created by New Jersey educator, mom and children’s book author Sholeen Lou-Hsaio, the Mandarin-language matching game resembles bingo and introduces the 54 basic Chinese characters. It uses “the spirited nature of a memory game to encourage effective learning. It takes away the fear students have of learning Chinese,” said Lou-Hsiao.
• Learn more about giant pandas by clicking on this link, or read “Pandas’ Earthquake Escape” at Big Universe. (Sylvan Dell)
• “Confucius, Chinese Philosopher”  is another Big Universe book by Gisela Lee, who collaborated with Wendy Conklin to write this biography. (Teacher Created Materials Publishing)
• Look at “Holidays”  by author Dona Herweck Rice. It’s aimed at younger children with simple text and great pictures. Keep an eye out for the Chinese New Year street parade picture. (Teacher Created Materials Publishing)
• Go to Page 33 in the book “Animal World,” published by Saddleback Educational Publishing.  It offers a little zoology on the tiger – with colorful photographs and a fun “factoscope” box. Or read “What Tigers Do,” a beginner book written by Kris Bonnell and published by Reading Reading Books, LLC.
• Print out this coloring page of a tiger, a boy in traditional holiday clothing, or one of men dressed to do the Chinese New Year lion dance.